Screamin’ in the Rain
Posted inArnzen News

Screamin’ in the Rain

I am proud to report the publication of some of my film studies research at What Sleeps Beneath -- a fantastic horror film-focused journal that not only features some brilliant current film reviews and interesting thinkpieces on the genre, but also recently won the annual "Best Blog" award from Pittsburgh City Paper. Right on. My contribution is called "Screamin’ in the Rain: The Orchestration of Catharsis in William Castle’s The Tingler" and in it I compare Castle's over-the-top screamer of horror to one of the most heart-moving movie musicals ever made, Gene Kelly's Singin in the Rain. What's that? What…
December 8, 2024Posted inArnzen News
Posted inArnzen News

Exploring Dark Short Fiction Series 2019

Smartly edited by Eric J. Guignard and gorgeously illustrated by Michelle Prebich, these books are an excellent way to get to know (or if you already know them, then to better understand) the pre-eminent writers of SHORT STORIES in the horror genre. They feature five-to-six selected stories that represent their strengths, each including an academic commentary that I provide (along with a longer essay I contribute on why that author matters in the grander scheme of things). It's a fantastic series of "primers" and serves an important function to the genre, as so many of the authors are celebrated for…
August 25, 2019Posted inArnzen News
Posted inArnzen News

Exploring Dark Short Fiction Series 2018: Kaaron Warren #2 & Nisi Shawl #3

Following up on the success of the first study of contemporary writer Steve Rasnic Tem, 2018 saw the publication of two new entries into the Exploring Dark Short Fiction Series published by Dark Moon Books: Primers to Australian author Kaaron Warren (#2) and -- just released this December -- Afrofuturist Nisi Shawl (#3). Smartly edited by Eric J. Guignard and gorgeously illustrated by Michelle Prebich, these books are an excellent way to get to know (or if you know them, to better understand) the pre-eminent writers of SHORT STORIES in the horror genre, because they feature five-to-six selected stories that…
December 23, 2018Posted inArnzen News1 Comment
Posted inArnzen News

Exploring Dark Short Fiction Series #1: Steve Rasnic Tem

Dark Moon Books, newly acquired and resurrected by Eric J. Guignard, has just released the first in a series of primers and tributes to significant horror writers working in the short fiction genre, called Exploring Dark Short Fiction. I am the current academic consultant, contributing analytical commentaries on every story and a longer essay on the significance of the writer's work. The first book is devoted to the great Steve Rasnic Tem, collecting six of his shorts (one new): "Hungry," "The Last Moments Before Bed," "In These Final Days of Sales," "Rat Catcher," "The Giveaway" and a creepy new original…
July 21, 2017Posted inArnzen News
Posted inArnzen News

More on “Please Publish My New Adult Coloring Book: GTFU”

Today my short parody, "Please Publish My Adult Coloring Book: Grow the F*ck Up!" is featured on McSweeney's Internet Tendency.  I'm perversely proud of this, for some reason.  Mostly, I think, because it validates my thinking that this silly piece actually contains a great idea for a book! However, I am also sensitive to the notion that adult coloring books have therapeutic value. When my dad had a stroke, this was something I bought him to help retrain motor memory and create even though debilitated.  I also think coloring is fun, and it's kind of cool when groups of people…
April 25, 2016Posted inArnzen News